It is common in various sports and when playing certain games that a device is used to exert a propulsive force upon an object which in most situations is some type of ball. In fact, the common denominator of most sports or games may be said to be the use of some object to propel a ball to a desired location.
For example, the well known games of tennis or golf utilize a racket or club respectively in order to propel the game ball. In the game of jai alai, a long, hand-shaped basket is strapped to the wrist and used to catch and propel the game ball against a wall.
Similarly, there are a number of game type apparatuses which are used to both catch and eject the game ball. For example, the patent to G. Weiss, 2,541,392, discloses a cone which may be used to catch the game ball and a spring blade which may be snapped in order to then eject the ball from the cone. Other patents such as A. G. H. Kreiss, U.S. Pat. No. 3,467,381, and H. Behrend, U.S. Pat. No. 1,156,047, disclose similar devices.
Being familiar with such apparatus, it will be realized that it has heretofore been customary to produce either a device such as Weiss wherein the ball is caught and then ejected or else a racket type of device wherein the ball simply ricochets off of the apparatus. It has thus been necessary for the players to make a choice as to which type of device they will use, which device would then dictate to a large degree the mode and strategies of the game.
Furthermore, with present propulsion type devices, the device itself is generally inconvenient to transport. For example, most devices contain at least one elongated portion which is not flexible and, therefore, cannot be carried easily in one's pocket or the like.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a propulsion device which is easily transportable.
Another object of this invention is to provide a propulsion device which may be used not only to catch and then propel an object, but may also be used as a surface off of which an object may ricochet.
Another object of this invention is to provide a propulsion device which is economical to manufacture.
Still another object of this invention is to provide a propulsion device which is easy to use.
Objects and advantages of the invention are set forth in part herein and in part will be obvious herefrom, or may be learned by practice with the invention, the same being realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations pointed out in the appended claims.